Three riverfronts, a 47 m footbridge and a civic centre, built on the Alaknanda in front of one of India's holiest shrines.
The redevelopment of Shri Badrinath Dham runs along both banks of the Alaknanda. CPS built three riverfronts, the pedestrian bridge between them and a civic centre near Badrish Lake.
Every part of it had to be founded below a fast, freezing river, and finished between yatra crowds.
−10 to 20 °C
Below zero from October to April. Concrete takes longer to set even with admixtures, so pours are planned around the cold.
5–7 m below the bed
Foundations in bouldery strata with seepage that 10–12 dewatering pumps could not fully stop. Some days the only way across was the bucket.
May – November yatra
Pilgrim traffic restricts equipment movement and slows material supply, with homes on both banks. Work carries on after dark.
Right bankAlaknanda River
Riverfront A on the right bank: dewatering, excavation through boulders, reinforcement and concrete, much of it in freezing conditions.
Left bankAlaknanda River
Riverfront F on the left bank, with the same boulders and even more water coming in from both sides.
47 m spanNear Badrish Lake
A 47 m pedestrian bridge across the Alaknanda, and a Civic Centre building near Badrish Lake. The bridge piers sit 5–7 m below the riverbed, so seepage control set the pace.
Every CPS site has its own window, river and rock. Pick the next one.
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